Disposable income in 2026: how much should you have left each month?

That amount is your disposable income (rådighedsbeløb).

In 2026 a public benchmark is 7.880 kr. a month for one adult and 13.360 kr. for two adults. If you have children, an amount is added for each child depending on the child's age. It is a benchmark, not an automatic approval threshold. The bank must assess your finances individually.^[1]

In brief

• Disposable income is what you have left each month once all fixed expenses are paid.
• The amount must cover, among other things, food, clothes, leisure, holidays, savings and unexpected expenses.
• The public benchmark in 2026 is 7.880 kr. for one adult and 13.360 kr. for two adults.
• For children, 2.150 kr., 2.740 kr. or 3.950 kr. is added per child depending on age.
• The bank can use other amounts and also looks at what you have actually been used to living on.
• Your disposable income after the purchase can limit your purchase budget, even if your debt-to-income ratio (gældsfaktor) looks reasonable.

Want to start with your own figure? Work out the indicative disposable income for your household.

What is disposable income?

Disposable income is the money left from the household's income after tax once all fixed expenses have been deducted.

The formula is simple:

Income after tax minus fixed expenses = disposable income

If your household takes home 42.000 kr. a month and has fixed expenses of 25.000 kr., the disposable income is 17.000 kr.

Those 17.000 kr. have to pay for everything that is not a fixed bill. That is why the figure tells you more about everyday life after the purchase than your salary does on its own.

What should disposable income cover?

Disposable income typically has to cover:

• Food and groceries
• Clothes and shoes
• Personal care
• Leisure activities and entertainment
• Holidays and gifts
• Savings
• Replacing phones, computers, bikes and other things in the home
• Unexpected expenses

Housing payments, electricity, heating, insurance, transport, subscriptions and repayments on other debt are normally counted as fixed expenses. They are therefore deducted before you arrive at your disposable income.

If you are unsure what belongs where, you can read the guide on fixed expenses for a family.

Indicative disposable income in 2026

The public amounts for 2026 look like this:

The amounts have been adjusted for 2026 and appear in the Danish Tax Agency's (Skattestyrelsen) legal guidance on individual assessment of ability to pay.^[1]

They are useful as a shared benchmark. But they are not a promise of what the bank will approve. The lender must assess whether the amount is sufficient for your particular household. An amount below the benchmark can in some cases be accepted after an individual assessment. Conversely, an amount in line with the benchmark can be too low if your actual spending is higher.^[2]

Work out the amount for your household using your children's actual ages.

Disposable income for one adult

For a single person without children, the benchmark is 7.880 kr. a month in 2026.

If you live alone, you normally carry the entire housing cost yourself. So a home that looks affordable based on your income can still leave you with a tight disposable income once all fixed items are included.

The bank does not only look at the benchmark. If over a longer period you have spent considerably more than 7.880 kr. a month after fixed expenses, the bank may judge that a large drop will be hard to make work in practice.

Disposable income for two adults

For two adults without children, the benchmark is 13.360 kr. a month. It is made up of 7.880 kr. for the first adult and 5.480 kr. for the second.

Both incomes and the household's total fixed expenses are normally included in the calculation. The bank can also look at how shared expenses are actually split, particularly if only one person is taking out the loan.

Disposable income for families with children

Children affect the calculation in two places.

First, the family may have more fixed expenses for childcare, after-school care (SFO), transport, insurance and leisure activities. Second, the benchmark goes up for each child.

Age determines the amount:

• 0 to 1 years: 2.150 kr. a month
• 2 to 6 years: 2.740 kr. a month
• 7 to 17 years: 3.950 kr. a month

A family with two adults and two children aged 2 to 6 therefore gets this benchmark:

13.360 kr. + 2.740 kr. + 2.740 kr. = 18.840 kr.

If one child is 3 and the other is 8, the calculation becomes:

13.360 kr. + 2.740 kr. + 3.950 kr. = 20.050 kr.

This is exactly why a calculator is more precise than a table with one standard family.

The benchmark is not the bank's final answer

The guidance from the Danish FSA (Finanstilsynet) and the Consumer Ombudsman (Forbrugerombudsmanden) stresses that the need is individual. The lender must assess whether there is enough money left for you to pay the loan's monthly payments on time and still make everyday life work.^[2]

The bank may therefore look at:

• The size of the household
• The children's ages
• Actual spending
• Car and transport needs
• Medicine and other necessary expenses
• The age of the home and expected maintenance
• The stability of your income
• Debt and monthly repayments
• The risk of higher interest rates

Two families with the same income can therefore get different assessments. Everyday life can look the same in a spreadsheet and very different when there are two cars, a long commute or an old house with several repairs coming up.

How the bank calculates before and after the purchase

The bank typically looks at two pictures of your finances.

Your finances today

Here the bank looks at income, fixed expenses and your actual spending. The bank may ask for bank statements and other documentation. The period can vary, so ask the bank how far back it wants information.

Your finances after the purchase

Here your current rent or housing payment is replaced by the expected cost of the new home. The bank also adds relevant expenses for, among other things, loans, property taxes, insurance, heating and maintenance.

The bank then looks at what is left.

If your disposable income drops significantly after the purchase, the bank will typically assess whether the change seems realistic. The bank looks both at whether the figure is above or below a table and at how big a change you expect to make to your everyday life.

For home financing, the bank can also allow for interest rate rises, so your finances are not assessed only on today's rate.^[3]

Example with two adults and two children

A family consists of two adults and two children aged 3 and 8.

After tax, the family receives 46.000 kr. in its account each month. After the purchase, they expect fixed expenses to be 25.000 kr.

The calculation is:

The benchmark for the household is:

In the example, the family's disposable income is 950 kr. above the public benchmark.

That does not automatically mean the bank will approve the purchase. The bank still looks at debt, the home, the loan type, documentation and the family's actual spending. The example only shows how the figures can be set out.

Which fixed expenses should be included?

The calculation is only useful if the fixed expenses are included.

Typical items are:

• Rent or expected housing payment
• Property taxes and owners' or homeowners' association fees
• Electricity, water, heating and waste collection
• Home, contents, car and accident insurance
• Car, fuel, parking or public transport
• Childcare and after-school care (SFO)
• Phone, internet and subscriptions
• Repayments on car loans, student debt and other debt
• Regular expenses for medicine or treatment

Annual and quarterly bills must be spread across the months. Otherwise your finances look better in the months when the bill is not due.

You can use the guide Budget before buying a home to bring income, fixed expenses, housing costs and a buffer together in one calculation.

Which income can the bank count on?

A fixed salary is usually simple to document. Other income may require a closer assessment.

This can apply to, among other things:

• Bonuses
• Commission
• Overtime
• Self-employed income
• Child maintenance
• Public benefits
• A new salary after changing jobs

How the income is treated depends on stability, documentation and the bank's method. So avoid assuming that all income automatically counts in full in the final credit assessment (kreditvurdering).

One-off items on your bank statement

A bank statement shows what has happened. It does not always tell you what happens every month.

A move, a wedding, a big trip or a one-off repair can make spending look higher than normal. A bonus or an inheritance can, conversely, make income look higher.

The bank can take one-off items into account if they can be documented and explained. That is why it makes sense to know the difference between:

• Expenses that recur
• Expenses that only arose once
• Income you can count on in future
• Income that was temporary

This is not about dressing up the budget. It is about giving the bank an accurate picture.

What can change your disposable income?

Your disposable income changes when your income or fixed expenses change.

This can happen, among other things, if:

• Your housing cost goes up or down
• The interest rate or repayments change
• A loan is paid off
• Your transport needs change
• A child starts or stops childcare
• An income changes
• The household takes on new fixed expenses

The most important thing is to calculate on the finances you will have after the purchase. Not the finances you have today.

Disposable income is also linked to the debt-to-income ratio and the four pillars of your home finances. The bank assesses the whole picture, not just one figure.

How to prepare your figures for the bank meeting

You can make the calculation easier to go through by gathering:

1. The household's income after tax
2. Fixed monthly expenses
3. Annual and quarterly expenses spread over 12 months
4. Repayments on all debt
5. Expected costs for the new home
6. Notes on larger one-off items

Once the figures are gathered, you can use the checklist for preparing for your bank meeting.

In summary

Disposable income is the money that has to make your everyday life work once the home and all the fixed bills are paid.

Use the 2026 amounts as a benchmark. Then work out your own finances with the actual expenses you will have after the purchase. The bank makes the final assessment.

Work out the indicative disposable income for your household.

BoligKlar gives you a second pair of eyes and an overview. The bank makes the final decision on the financing.

Frequently asked questions